It took just over an hour to get the sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll out of the way on Nickelback's 24-hour-long cross-Canada publicity blitz yesterday.

The Alberta band began the whirlwind trip in Halifax and were on the way to Vancouver by day's end with stops in Toronto and Calgary to stage mini-concerts, meet fans and conduct media interviews.

At the Halifax airport, about 200 devotees gathered just before 8 a.m. as Nickelback's hit single Photograph blared over loudspeakers. Among them was an enthusiastic young woman who offered herself to frontman Chad Kroeger.

By 9 a.m., Kroeger was on the plane's intercom system asking the 81 passengers - label reps, fans and media - aboard WestJet Flight 8301 for marijuana.

"Walking was going to take way too long," deadpanned Kroeger when asked about the grandiose plan. "It's really because we want to go on vacation really quickly."

Kroeger and the band - rounded out by his brother, bassist Mike Kroeger, guitarist Ryan Peake and drummer Daniel Adair - have good reason to be cocky.

The Toronto leg of the trip was five hours long and included a meet and greet at downtown music store HMV and a five-song set for contest winners at MuchMusic.

The band remained in high spirits, lapping up the attention of the day, which epitomized the glitz and glamour of rock stardom, complete with police escorts, pretty girls, hysterical fans and plenty of booze.

It became a radio smash, giving the unknown rock musicians a No. 1 hit and an international audience. That led to non-stop stadium touring around the globe.

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